Reference Service in the Children's Department:

Reference and information requests received b the Children's Services Department of The Urbana (l~inois! Free Library were analyzed according to the types of ques- tions asked and the distribution of adult and childiyoung adult patrons making the requests. It was found that a sub- stantial pro ortion of the re uests were made by adult pa- trons, and tiat adult and chiljren tend to ask different kinds of questions. Children tended to ask for assistance of an es- sentially mechanical nature, such as help in locating items and assistance with audiovisual materials. Adults tended to ask complex reader's advisory questions, reference questions, and questions concerning library policies and programs. It is sug- gested that children's departments need to make greater ef- forts to deliberately serve their adult patrons, that the analy- sis of reference and informational questions can lead to better collection development decisions, and that thorough commu- nity analysis may be essential to the effective functioning of a children's department.